


Lamb to the Slaughter

by ElvaDeath



Series: The World of Asano Gakushuu [10]
Category: Assassination Classroom, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Merlin (TV)
Genre: + some Gakushuu angst cause, Akabane Karma is a Little Shit, Angst, Asano Gakuhou's Bad Parenting, Asano Gakushuu Needs A Hug, Asano Gakushuu is Bad at Feelings, Asano Gakushuu-centric, Draco Malfoy is a Little Shit, Hogwarts Inter-House Friendships, How Do I Tag, Luna Lovegood is a Good Friend, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Sakakibara Ren is a Good Friend, Slytherin Asano Gakushuu, Tags May Change, The Wizarding World has so many issues I'm not kidding, gakushuu angst, mentions of merlin, this is just for me to rant about it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-09
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-15 12:21:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29314005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElvaDeath/pseuds/ElvaDeath
Summary: 'At the age of eight, he is already far above his peers. The realisation he has magic doesn’t come as a surprise.'orGakushuu is thrown into a world of magic, danger, and very very poor planning which he would like to take up with whoever runs this damn Hogwarts place, thank you very much. With a school full of potential allies and rivals, Gakushuu has to figure out what on earth is going on, who is responsible, and find their manager in time to stop it. Oh, and let's not forget, he has to make sure he doesn't become the villain along the way.It's harder than you think.
Relationships: Asano Gakushuu & Sakakibara Ren
Series: The World of Asano Gakushuu [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1657669
Comments: 15
Kudos: 77





	1. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (It really does seem like I'm having a crisis every two seconds to everyone on here, doesn't it? Well, that assessment might be accurate. I have written barely anything in the past month or so, certainly not enough to even post a one-shot, so here's the start of my spicy very long magic Gakushuu fic. I'm posting slowly to fill up time, so fingers crossed, by the time I've finished posting everything I've written for this I will have done something else to show you.)
> 
> Anyway! Welcome to 'Lamb to the Slaughter' (if you get the reference I will kiss you)!
> 
> Quick warning: Gakushuu is a little shit, Draco is a little shit, everyone apart from Ren (baby) and Luna (darling) are terrible people. They're kids, though, character development will come. Also, there's a lot of talk about the wizarding world as a whole. Where magic came from, why the houses are divided, with Gakushuu and Luna becoming rightfully frustrated with how bad everything is.
> 
> Now! On with the show...
> 
> Enjoy!  
> \- E.D.

Gakushuu was five years old when Rikuto Ikeda died.

His death was not unusual. It was the familiar story of bullying gone too far, shoes left by the side of the bridge, a quietly mourning family. His loss wasn’t reported in the newspapers, wasn’t investigated much further than a cursory glance by the police. He wasn’t the first person to have jumped from the bridge. He won’t be the last. His death was nothing more than a statistic, to the rest of the world, and did not affect anything more than around twenty people. Rikuto Ikeda was a drop in the ocean that created no more than a slight ripple. Within ten or twenty years, his memory should have faded, and any reference to him should have only been a mournful shrug, quickly forgotten.

_ Your enthusiasm is an asset, Ikeda. _

It’s funny how the Asanos have a way of defying expectations like that.

_ When I grow up, sir, do you mind if I come and visit sometime? _

Much later, when Gakushuu has been molded into his father’s vision of strength, he visits the bridge.

_ But then, what is strength? Until I have the answer, I have no right to teach. _

He leaves an hour later, with a promise to be better. Maybe if he is, then Ikeda won’t be the only person his father has ever loved.

  
  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~

  
  


At the age of eight, he is already far above his peers. The realisation he has magic doesn’t come as a surprise.

Why would it? Out of every other child he has met, he is the one most superior, the one who deserves magic. It’s untamed, unpredictable, and often acts disfavorably towards him, but it’s  _ magic _ . Every other skill he has developed is improving at a steady rate, so he decides to dedicate more time into cultivating this unruly power.

By the time he is ten, he can lift a vase to his ceiling and back down without smashing it. He can make someone mute for a minute. He can shatter glass. He can freeze the world around him for a few seconds. He can call up a wind, or a splatter of rain. If he concentrates hard enough, he can teleport around his house, or vanish small objects into midair, or set a fire in his hand.

Admittedly, it takes some time away from his other duties. He drops basketball, since his father never came to any of his games anyway, and he couldn’t control his team members enough to win every time. His friends come and go depending on how busy he is at one time, fluctuating and passing by him, as meaningless as echos. Once, he even tried prioritising magic development over his schoolwork.

He never tries that again.

But although he is so, so careful, his mask hasn’t fully evolved to match his father’s yet. One friend notices.

Sakakibara Ren. Not the smartest, not at all, but Gakushuu took one look at his face and knew he had to have him. The girls fawn over them when they walk past, the two princes of their year group, and Gakushuu knows Ren absorbs the adoration like a sponge. He can’t lie, he does too. They become somewhat inseparable, even when Gakushuu is so so busy all of the time. Ren morphs his schedule to please him. Ren follows him around, never argues or questions or invades, and so Gakushuu lets Ren fuss over him occasionally. He wouldn’t say he likes Ren, but he does find something reassuring in his constant presence through elementary school.

Which is why he doesn’t immediately cut Ren off when he asks about Gakushuu’s unexplained absences.

Instead, he pulls Ren into a cupboard and forces him to swear upon his family’s life that he will never pass the information to anyone else. Then he takes a deep breath, summons up all of his confidence (he’s well practiced in this, living with his father), and tells Ren about his magic.

Ren’s face twists. He looks vaguely constipated. He squeaks ‘ok!’ and proceeds to never mention it again, despite Gakushuu’s attempts to bring it up. Every time magic is mentioned, Ren lets out a startled whine and metaphorically (sometimes literally) runs away with a pained expression. After about three months of this, Gakushuu drops the topic completely, theorising that Ren likely thinks he’s hallucinating from stress.

It goes without saying that he never tells his father.

His housekeeper suspects something, he knows. She comes every day, grey hair tied into a tight bun and green eyes sharp, cooking a nutritionally balanced meal that they eat in silence. Her cleaning has left her to find the remains of his magical experiments, and she has walked in many times on his training, eying hastily dropped objects with obvious suspicion. Still, she never mentions anything, and simply cleans up with brusque but kind words about how he should go outside and play more. Gakushuu never does. He appreciates the sentiment, though.

If his father were to hear her, he would fire her. Gakushuu has a feeling he wouldn’t approve of petty activities like playing, and would approve even less of an employee advising his son to do so. Luckily, his father is rarely around for their conversations, so she manages to keep the job until she herself decides to retire. He contemplates whether he misses her, when she goes, seeing as how she’s practically raised him where his father forgot to. In the end, he attributes the solemn feeling to the realisation that he will have to cook his own meals until they get a new housekeeper. Somewhere in between his schoolwork and extracurriculars, he forgot to fit in ‘learning how to feed himself’. Ah, well, he’s only ten, he has time left before he has to live by himself.

His father would call that procrastination. Gakushuu calls it time management. He finds his calendar for the year he turns sixteen and adds a different dish to make on every sunday. That should be sufficient for the basics. When he has defeated the highest ranking professional in one of his other extracurriculars, he can replace that with cooking, and then become a master chef. Time management, not procrastination. His father can be so impatient sometimes.

Like when Gakushuu placed second in maths at the age of seven, and his father clipped a dog collar around his neck, and-

No. He is better than that now. He is  _ not  _ scared of his father, he is  _ not _ weaker than his classmates, he is  _ not _ worse than a mindless mutt. He hasn’t lost to anyone in maths ever again, and he only slips in other rankings when he decides to train up his friends. Ren is almost on par with Gakushuu in Japanese at this point, and Gakushuu thinks he enjoys the challenge, even if it makes telling his father his Japanese ranking more difficult. When he’s older, he may choose specific minions to train up in the other subjects, if only to exercise his power over molding other’s minds.

He doubts his father will approve. Part of him, a part that is steadily growing louder, argues that this is exactly why he should do it. Doesn’t he constantly rile Gakushuu up to make him fight harder, if only to prove him wrong? Isn’t defiance by power play what his father is expecting? Gakushuu can never quite tell, so he keeps these thoughts inside until the opportune moment.

When he was younger, he was less able to hide what he thought. He hadn’t learnt enough to avoid uncomfortable questions. Questions like ‘where is my mother’? His father only ever gave cryptic replies to that, not much of what he said making much sense. Eventually, Gakushuu realised he really didn’t care about his mother. Anyone who left an innocent child to a man like his father doesn’t deserve to be cared about. If she is dead, then he still wouldn’t find it in himself to care. He didn’t know her, so that is that.

Generally, Gakushuu grows up an unusual child in so many ways. With a father like his and magic thrumming in his veins, how could he grow up any different? He has a presence. He has power. He has a twisted morality and a knack for manipulation. He has amethyst eyes and centipedes crawling under his skin. If a person could be an omen, Gakushuu would fit perfectly.

They should have seen the storm coming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a spur of the moment posting!!! I did not prepare!!! Edits may be made and tags will be added and removed a LOT. Updates will be incredibly slow and this is definitely going to be a LONG fic, like What's Left Behind.
> 
> If you're the sort of person who gets impatient easily, or forgets plots after not reading a fic for a while (haha me), I'd recommend bookmarking this and waiting for it to be finished.
> 
> ~~~~~~~~~~
> 
> Question time!
> 
> Simple one today:  
> Are you excited?! Are you hyped?! Are you ready for some depressing angst and excessively in-depth examinations of the wizarding world???
> 
> (Actually two questions: I usually use basic HTML to post, but I'm trying out Rich Text. Which one do you prefer? HTML has nicer spacing, but Rich Text has italics and positions where text starts, in case you didn't know the difference.)


	2. Time to Begin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I have 99 problems and 72 comments in my inbox that will possibly maybe hopefully be looked at one day)
> 
> Gakushuu becomes a Karen.
> 
> Enjoy!  
> \- E.D.

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

Gakushuu sighs, setting down his pen and looking up at the window. The large eyes of an owl stare back.

Tap.

Tap.

He blinks, frozen. The creature ruffles its feathers in irritation and leans forward again, beak tapping against the glass.

Tap.

Gakushuu would say he isn’t surprised by a lot of things anymore. When he can float on command, nothing much becomes surprising. However, having an owl tapping on his window at four o’clock in the afternoon with something tied around its leg makes for an… interesting sight.

Tap. Tap tap.

Perhaps he should leave it outside, and call an animal rescue shelter. Owls flying about in the middle of the day is never a good sign. Instead, Gakushuu reaches forwards and opens the window, letting the owl hop inside and stick out its leg. Part of him mourns the loss of his perfectly neat work under the owl’s claws, but he can’t be too annoyed, considering there is an owl sitting on his desk with a letter on its leg. In the middle of the day.

The creature hoots insistently, hopping forward again and waving its leg in the air.

“If this turns out to be a dream, I will be sorely disappointed.” He informs the owl, reaching forward and delicately untying the envelope. The material is strange, rougher than the normal smooth paper, although Gakushuu supposes that whoever sends messages by owl wouldn’t own normal envelopes.

The owl hoots again, picks up a piece of ham from his plate, and flies out the window.

He sighs, throwing the rest of the sandwich in the bin (Hygiene, and all that. He isn’t hungry anyway.) and examining the spidery green writing across the front. Because whoever sent this evidently has never heard of black ballpoint pens. At the back is a crest of some sort, with the word ‘Hogwarts’ emblazoned over the top. Hogwarts. Gakushuu would usually throw such an obvious prank letter in the bin, yet the boredom of writing his essay is starting to drive him around the bend, so he opens the letter instead. No glitter or foam sprays out, thankfully.

HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore

(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)

Dear Mr Asano,

We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. 

Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress

Gakushuu shakes his head, looking through the enclosed list with faint amusement. Glass phials, wands, cauldrons - whoever sent this must think Gakushuu is some sort of fool. Not only are they too lazy to give a decent explanation in the letter, but they seem to think it would be reasonable for a wizarding society to be this far behind. He sets the letter and the list side by side on his desk, placing the ticket (from platform 9 ¾, as though Gakushuu is supposed to believe that it exists) underneath, then takes a picture and sends it to Ren.

‘These pranks are getting lazier. They did enlist the help of an owl, which was unexpected, so I’m a little impressed at that.’

Almost the second he sends it, Ren calls him. He smirks, picking up and waiting for the explosion of laughter. It doesn’t come.

“Merlin, Gakushuu, I’ve been dying to tell you about this! You won’t believe how hard it’s been to keep this a secret!”

...What.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Owls to send messages.  _ Owls _ .”

“Why is  _ this _ the thing you’re confused about?” Ren huffs from the laptop screen, his own letter clutched in one hand. “We can do magic, there’s a whole secret wizarding world, we’re about to go to a school for magic, and you’re stuck on the owls?”

“But… phones.” He says helplessly, one finger pressed hard against his temple to hold in a headache. His work lies abandoned to the side, which his father won’t be pleased about, but if this isn’t enough for his father to let him off the hook for one day, he doesn’t know what is. “Phones are so much quicker and easier. Do they not know phones exist?”

“Yes, we know phones exist, we’re just terrible at understanding muggle technology.” Ren buries his face in his hands. “Gakushuu, please tell me you’re at least a little bit excited about this. Magic! Actual magic!”

“I already know I can do magic, Ren, I told you almost three years ago.” He waves it off, the sheer stupidity of the whole thing making his eyes sting. “I can also work a phone. How hard can it be? How can they think training an owl to carry letters about and not get caught by normal people is easier than pressing a few buttons to work a phone?”

“Not  _ normal people _ , Gakushuu, it’s  _ muggles _ . Muggles.” Ren repeats, lifting his head to stare hard at Gakushuu, emphasising his point. “And I don’t know, ok? I’ve never really thought about it. Tradition, probably.”

“It was tradition to stone people to death for adultery.” Gakushuu points out. “Do they still do that, then?”

“No!” Ren throws his arms in the air. “Morgana’s kirt, can you please just accept it for now? You can ask the professors about it when we get to school. Start the digital revolution in the wizarding world, for all I care.”

“Who says I’m even going to go to this ‘Hogwarts’?” He squeezes his eyes shut, pushing away the upcoming migraine.

There’s silence for a long time, long enough that Gakushuu opens his eyes to check that Ren hasn’t spontaneously combusted.

“You’re not?” Ren rasps, eyes wide and face drained white. “But… what? It’s magic school.  _ Magic _ school. How can you not go?”

“My father.”

And that’s it, isn't it? If he says no, there’s no way Gakushuu can go. With all of the strings his father holds over him, he can’t do a single thing outside of what is expected, or the consequences will be more than painful. Gakushuu has a feeling magic school isn’t something his father had set out for him.

“He can’t stop you going!” Ren protests, leaning forward into the camera. “Look, if we sneak out and get all your things from Diagon Alley, he can’t say no then. He wouldn’t waste money like that, and he can’t think you’re lying to him with all of that evidence. Right?”

Gakushuu sighs, stepping through every scenario from that. None of them turn out too well, but some of them do get him into this magic school. Some of them get him into a mental asylum, too, but he’s not too worried about that. He could talk his way out eventually.

“Right.”

He might as well give it a try. If he doesn’t do that, he may spend the rest of his life cursing himself for letting the opportunity slip away.

“Great!” Ren’s face lights up in a grin. “Our owl’s a bit fat and slow from sitting about so much, but I’m sure he’ll be able to carry both of our letters to Hogwarts. I’ll help you write yours at school tomorrow, ‘cause we’ll need to tell them your dad might say no. Then, in, like, two week’s time, you can tell your dad some excuse and me and my mum will pick you up and take you to Diagon Alley. I’m so excited! This is gonna be amazing!”

With that, Ren ends the call, and Gakushuu sits back. A small smile tugs at his lips from Ren’s enthusiasm, which always makes the room a little brighter, but he feels the familiar dread of disobeying his father. Plenty of excuses come to mind for the day, all of them acceptable, none of them reassuring the twist in his stomach. Oh well. He’ll have calmed down by the time he gets there.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He hasn’t calmed down. Ren bounces beside him in the car as they drive, jabbering away about his plans for a pet, but Gakushuu tuned him out at least ten minutes ago. He keeps glancing at the passengers in the cars around him, half-expecting to catch a glimpse of malicious purple eyes. He’s not nervous. Not at all. Only… aware. Gakushuu is very aware of his surroundings, which is a good thing, as he will be unlikely to be taken off-guard.

“I think Jaws would be a good name, right?”

“Mm.”

“We should get matching names! Mine is Jaws, yours is… maws. Paws. Laws. Wait, no, that last one is something your dad would pick.”

“Yeah.”

“Well, he named you after himself, basically, so maybe you should name your pet after you. Gakushaws. How about that?”

“Mhm.”

“Gakushuu! You’re not listening to me again! You’d never name a pet Gakushaws.”

“I wouldn’t name a pet in the first place.” He turns to look at Ren, a flat expression settled perfectly.

Ren makes a face. “Please don’t tell me you’re getting an owl and calling it Owl.”

“Now that you’ve said it, I might as well.” He smirks slightly at Ren’s exasperation. “I was planning on simply never referring to it, yet naming it by its species would be appropriate.”

“I don’t understand you sometimes.” Ren sighs. “Making names for pets is the most exciting thing about getting one!”

“I’ll only purchase an animal if it serves a purpose, Ren, and seeing as there is no internet connection in Hogwarts, I will have to get one.”

“Actually, the school has-” Ren starts, then cuts himself off, a small smile sliding onto his face. Gakushuu knows that expression. It’s the ‘I have such a cunning plan, Gakushuu will never guess it’ smile.

“The school has what?” He frowns, examining Ren’s face for any clues.

“Nothing.” Ren says hurriedly as they park. “Oh, look! We’re here! Hey, mum, can we drop into Gringotts for Gakushuu to get his money?”

“Of course, dear.” Ren’s mother flashes them her television smile, all red lips and white teeth. “He wouldn’t be able to buy anything otherwise!”

Gakushuu laughs politely along with her as they make their way towards the doors of a rundown shop. “The school has what, Ren?” He hisses at his friend, giving a cursory glance to the building. When they’d said they were going to the entrance to the only magical high street in London, Gakushuu had imagined something more impressive than this. It could be a glamour, he supposes, something to ward away normal people.

“It doesn’t matter.” Ren whispers back, speeding to the doorway and striding inside. “Come on! Keep up!”

Gakushuu rolls his eyes, giving Ren’s mother another charming smile before following Ren in. Whatever he is planning, Gakushuu can avoid it becoming too damaging. Probably.

The inside isn’t much more impressive than the outside. Shabby, dim, with various characters dotted around the room, all with strange fashion sense. They’re chatting excitedly to each other, especially the bald bartender and the little man in a top hat, so none of them notice the three of them walking through. Gakushuu catches a few hurried words - ‘Potter’, ‘you know who’, ‘here, in this very inn!’ - but then they’re in a cramped courtyard and he can listen no longer.

Ren’s mother produces a long stick (her wand, according to Ren) and taps at a few bricks, sharp and precise. “My, it has been a long time since we visited. I’ve almost forgotten the pattern!” She laughs, tucking her wand away as the bricks fold in on themselves, forming an arch.

By this time, Ren is vibrating with enthusiasm. “Ta da! Diagon Alley! Isn’t it so cool?!”

Gakushuu steps through the arch, running his eyes over the chaotic scene in front of them. It is a very impressive sight, admittedly; crowded people in long robes shove past each other, a strange assortment of animals holler from their cages, and the whole street looks like something pulled straight from another universe.

“They should have widened the street.” He says instead. “The buildings have a poor structure, which is a safety hazard. I’m relatively sure that those cages don’t meet the standard for animal safety. That bookshop should keep its books inside, they could be easily stolen since there are no guards. Speaking of, with the amount of people and vulnerability of the architecture, there should be police monitoring the crowds, to lessen the risk of a terror attack of some description, seeing as how this street is of importance. I had expected better of a wizarding community.”

Ren deflates. “I should have guessed. You hate it, don’t you?”

“On the contrary.” Gakushuu grins, imagining his father’s face at the atrocious scene. “I love it.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Turns out the wizarding world doesn’t accept credit cards. 

The goblin (because the goblins take care of all of the money, obviously) had taken one look at Gakushuu’s outstretched card and turned away, much to Gakushuu’s irritation. Ren had managed to get enough money for the both of them by the time Gakushuu was done chewing out the creature, and saved him from being permanently banned from Gringotts, which  _ wasn’t _ about to happen, no matter how many times the goblin said it. Gakushuu is an Asano. No place is ever going to be able to ban him. Even so, he’d left with a tick in his jaw, conceding that the bank was simply too outdated for the likes of him.

They stop by the Magical Menagerie first, at Ren’s insistence, and so Gakushuu enlists the help of the shop assistant to locate the best owl. Ren, meanwhile, seems more interested in cooing at the various creatures, declaring that each of them are ‘the one’, then moving onto the next.

“How fast can this one fly?” Gakushuu examines a disgruntled-looking great horned owl, which hoots at him indignantly.

“I’m not sure.” The assistant sighs, scratching the back of his neck. “Look, kid, if you want a good owl, you should go to Eeylops Owl Emporium. They know which owl is the best. This place is mostly for the other pets, ya know?”

“Hey Gakushuu, isn’t this one cute? It’s called a Puffskein! You think it’ll fit the name Jaws?” Ren hollers from the other side of the store, holding up a giant fluff ball.

Gakushuu bristles at the assistant. “Kid? If you don’t mind me saying,  _ John _ , you have provided me with awful customer service. Not only have you explicitly shown an enormous lack of interest in assisting me, but you have both demonstrated your lack of knowledge on the subject of the very thing you sell and you have directed me to another store, losing money in the process. I doubt your manager will be impressed with this amount of ignorance and carelessness, don’t you think,  _ John _ ?”

“I think it fits the name Jaws.” Ren mutters, petting the creature. Having known Gakushuu for years, he’s used to this by now. After all, he was there the week Gakushuu made a teacher retire, all because they’d marked Gakushuu down a grade without explaining why.

“I don’t think that’s necessary, sir.” John stutters, sweat beading on his forehead at Gakushuu’s glare. “I have a book on the great horned owl if you would like to take a look. Would you want me to go get it?”

“Yes, thank you, John.” Gakushuu smiles, letting the man sprint away for the book. At least this particular person shall never call him  _ kid _ again. Honestly, the audacity some people have…

The door swings open, bell tinkling as a boy steps into the store. Pale hair, pale skin, an upturned nose; Gakushuu is all too familiar with his type.

“I’ll only be a minute, mother. Pansy and I want to compare the strangest creatures we’ve seen today, and I imagine this place will have some horrid mongrels.” The boy calls out the door, rolling his eyes sulkily at the response. “I’ll only be a minute, I said!”

Gakushuu turns back to the owl, examining its wings for any sign they may have been touched. Petting an owl’s wings can damage them, and the last thing Gakushuu would like is a damaged owl. Luckily, they seem to be untouched.

“I wouldn’t get that one if I was you.” The pale boy swans up next to Gakushuu. “The owls in this place have a horrible temper. I had to return the last one father bought. Mine’s an eagle owl, now, the best flier the Emporium could locate.”

The owl bristles at this, ruffling its wings and letting out a squawk.

“Perhaps they require more training.” Gakushuu comments, eying the boy. “Gakushuu Asano. You are?”

“Draco Malfoy.” The boy sticks his hand out, and Gakushuu shakes it. “Your name is awfully foreign. I’ve never heard of an Asano before. Or a Gakushuu.”

“My father was originally from Japan.” He sticks on his charming smile, the welcoming one he uses on new classmates. “He moved over here for university, and stayed to create his own private school.”

“University?” Draco scrunches his nose up, lips tugging down as he takes Gakushuu in. “Oh, you’re a half blood. I see.”

Ren bounds over, flicking his hair elegantly as he takes in Draco. “No, I’m half blood. He’s muggle born. Ren Sakakibara, by the way.”

“A mudblood?” Draco wipes the hand that had shook Gakushuu’s on his shirt. “I should have guessed. Looking in this place for an owl, dreadful muggle clothes, no wonder you jumped on me the second I walked in. Wanted to steal my magic, I suppose.”

Gakushuu stares at him, shellshocked. No one has ever looked at him like that. He’s directed plenty of similar looks at other people, seen those looks given to lower achieving students, but never ever been on the receiving end of one. Why would he be? He’s an Asano, purebred intelligence condensed into one person. Yes, he may look asian, but he’s never experienced the discrimination that comes with it. His very presence screams superior. Yet this boy is calling him ‘mudblood’, which is no doubt a slur based on the expression on his and Ren’s face. This boy has the gall to look down on him?

“Hey! You take that back!” Ren scowls, moving closer to Gakushuu and holding out his puff ball as some sort of shield. “Gakushuu is nothing like that, you shouldn’t-”

Then, like Gakushuu’s boiling rage has taken on animal form, the great horned owl leaps from its stand and launches itself at Draco, claws out and sinking into his arm. Draco lets out a screech, stumbling away and swatting at the bird as it pecks and claws at him, the horrified manager running over and trying to contain it. The door flies open, a thin terrified woman screaming ‘my baby!’ and joining the scene, only succeeding in infuriating the owl further. Ren and Gakushuu watch from the sidelines, Ren sniggering as Draco knocks into a display stand, landing on his back in a pile of Puffskeins which bounce over him, licking at his nose, the owl letting out a final battle cry and flinging itself at his face, claws outstretched.

Unfortunately, that is the point where the cord tied to the owl’s leg stretches tight, pulling it to an abrupt halt a centimeter from Draco’s face. The manager grabs it carefully, offering it treats to calm it, and Draco is instantly enveloped in the thin woman’s arms.

“My baby! My poor baby!” She sobs, clutching his reddening face as Ren snorts with laughter.

“Mother!” Draco swats at her, pushing himself up and fixing his clothes with red cheeks. “My father will hear about this!” He spits at the manager, storming out with his mother hot at his heels. The door slams shut.

Gakushuu turns to the assistant, newly returned with the book and a gobsmacked expression. “I’ll take the owl.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Question time!
> 
> What is the one thing that annoys you the most about the way the wizarding world works?


	3. Time Off

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ren mimics a potato. Gakushuu throws a plant.
> 
> Enjoy!  
> \- E.D.

“Please call it Claws. I’m begging you.” Ren pleads as they make their way down the street, his puffskein latched onto his shoulder.

“That’s a little too ‘on the nose’, don’t you think?” Gakushuu examines his owl, smiling when the creature snaps its beak at him threateningly. “Owl is more appropriate. Don’t you think, Owl?”

Owl squawks and turns away.

“I think she likes it.” Gakushuu concludes.

“I’m calling her Claws, anyway.” Ren pets the top of Jaws’ head. “Claws and Jaws. Do you think they’ll get along well?”

Gakushuu looks between Owl’s viciously sharp claws and the soft coat of Jaws. “Splendidly, I’m sure.”

They pause outside of the wand shop as a boy and his two dads walk out, the boy clutching his wand with a nervous expression. All three of them look worried, although the dark-haired dad seems to be trying to make the best of whatever situation they’re in.

“It probably means nothing, Harry.” He says, clapping the boy on the shoulder. “Besides, he said you could do great things! I think that’s positive, right, Moony?”

“Of course it is.” Replies the one with light brown hair. “I don’t doubt you’ll do amazing things.”

Gakushuu walks forward, ignoring the way Ren has frozen in place beside him. “Hello, this is Ollivander’s, correct?”

The boy startles, turning green eyes to him. “Oh! Yeah. Hi. I’m Harry, Harry Potter.”

Gakushuu sets Owl’s cage down to hold out his hand. “Gakushuu Asano. If you don’t mind me asking, what is it you were so worried about?”

“It was nothing.” The lighter-haired dad rushes out, exchanging a glance with the other one. “Do you need any help with anything? If you’ve lost your parents, we can help you fi-”

Gakushuu smiles tightly, annoyed at being treated like a child  _ again _ . “I’m quite alright, thank you, Mr Potter.”

“Actually, it’s Lupin. Remus Lupin.” Remus smiles brightly, looking between the three of them. “I’m… surprised you came to that conclusion.”

Ah. So the other one is Harry’s father, and Remus is a… family friend? “Well, it’s been nice meeting you. I’ll see you at Hogwarts, Harry.”

“Uh, yeah. Bye!” Harry waves awkwardly as Gakushuu strides past them into the shop, Ren stumbling in with him at the last second.

“Oh. My. Merlin.” Ren breathes, staring out at the group of three that walk away. “I can’t believe it. That was Harry Potter!”

Gakushuu frowns. “Yes, I know, Ren. He told me so.”

“No, no, you don’t get it!” Ren waves his hands, vibrating with excitement. “Right, so, backstory. There used to be this evil wizard, right? He hated all muggleborns, and all muggles, and thought wizards should only be pureblood and rule over muggles. Him and all the other bad purebloods started this war, and loads of people were killed. Then, he went to the Potter house. He tried killing them all, he killed Harry’s parents, but when he tried to kill Harry…” Ren stops and draws a finger across his throat.

“Harry can’t be dead, Ren, that’s ridiculous.” Gakushuu purses his lips. “I just talked to him.”

Ren huffs. “No, no, no, that’s not what I meant! Harry was only a baby, but when You Know Who tried to kill him, Harry survived and You Know Who didn’t. You Know Who is the evil wizard, by the way. So the war ended, and everyone celebrated, and Harry Potter is the Boy Who Lived, and he’s really famous because he killed You Know Who. Merlin, we just talked to the Boy Who Lived!”

“You mean _ I _ talked to the Boy Who Lived. You stood silently like a potato.” Gakushuu pauses, processing. “Why does everyone call him You Know Who?”

“In the war, if you said his name, he could find you.” Ren shivers. “It’s why my parents decided to move to the muggle world, and raise me there. They didn’t want to be found and have the same thing happen to them as the Potters had.”

“But… he’s dead. It’s fine to say his name now.” Gakushuu clarifies.

“Well… yeah.” Ren grimaces. “Still got some loonies out there who followed him, so we don’t want to run the risk. That Malfoy boy from before, the one your owl attacked, his dad was one of the followers. They called themselves the Death Eaters.”

Gakushuu smirks, one eyebrow raised incredulously. “The Death Eaters? As in, they eat death?”

“Yeah.” Ren winces. “Don’t laugh! They aren’t funny. They killed people.”

“But they called themselves the Death Eaters.” Gakushuu rolls his eyes. “They sound more like an edgy rock band than a terrorist organisation.”

An older voice chimes in behind them. “I wouldn’t underestimate the Death Eaters if I were you, my boy.”

Ren jumps in shock, twirling to face the man. Gakushuu doesn’t jump. At all. He turns around very smoothly and lets out a cough, which definitely doesn’t sound more like a squeak. He’s not scared. Or startled.

The man who’d spoken stares at them, his eyes large and silver, glowing from his pale skin. Lines run over his face, making shadows flicker ominously across it. “First years, are you? Both looking for your first wand?”

“Yes, sir.” Ren stutters. “My mum said you should look for the best one for each of us, price doesn’t matter.”

“Of course, of course.” The old man mutters, flicking his own wooden stick. A tape measure flies up, racing over Ren’s body and measuring everything it can. “Half bloods, decent amount of-”

“I’m afraid I have normal parents.” Gakushuu interrupts. “Muggle parents.”

The man stops, his tape measure freezing in the middle of measuring Ren’s eyebrows. “Do you, now?”

Gakushuu hesitates, unnerved by the wizard’s intense stare. “Yes, Mr Ollivander.”

“Curiouser and curiouser.” The old man mutters. “What are your names?”

“Gakushuu Asano, and my friend Ren Sakakibara.” Gakushuu holds out his hand.

“Asano, Asano, Asano.” He ignores the proffered hand, shaking his head and resuming his movements. “Mr Sakakibara, how about you try… this wand.” He slips a box from the shelf, flipping open the lid and offering it to Ren. Gakushuu frowns, a touch of irritation that he isn’t first, but is content to sit back and watch when Ren waves the wand and the lights go out.

He doesn’t have a moment of panic in the dark. Not at all.

This process goes on a couple of times, until Ren picks up a wand and a slight breeze ruffles their hair, Ren’s eyes blowing wide. “Woah.”

“Nine inch vine wood, a core of thestral tail hair. Very good, very good.” Ollivander murmurs, setting the box aside. “An unstable core, but in the hands of an intelligent and selfless person, can be used for great purposes. Take good care of it, Mr Sakakibara.”

“I will!” Ren breathes, staring at the twig like it’s his newborn baby.

“Now, then, Mr Asano.” Ollivander turns his large eyes to Gakushuu, tape measure flying over and tickling his ribs as it wraps around him. “Muggleborn, but not. A decent amount of power, I’m sensing. Tell me, what do you wish to find in a wand?”

Ren wasn’t asked these questions. Then again, Ren is far more inferior than Gakushuu. “What do I wish to find? I’m not entirely sure I understand the question.”

Ollivander nods, wispy hair bobbing with the movement. “As I thought. I suspect you may come in here more than once, Mr Asano. Nothing to be ashamed of, nothing at all. How about we start with this?”

And so the long trial begins. Gakushuu picks up a wand, waves it aimlessly, and watches another stack of wands topple over, or Jaws fly up into the air, or a vase shatter. With each failed attempt, Ollivander mutters yet another cryptic phrase, which Gakushuu is starting to get sorely tired of. Over twenty minutes pass, abandoned wands stacking up beside him, Ren sheltering in the corner to avoid the chaos. Gakushuu picks up his seventy second wand, which instantly snaps in his hand. His temper snaps along with it.

“This is pointless!” He bursts out in a flood of frustration. His father would be scolding him for weeks if he ever did this in front of him, but he’s sick and tired of this useless quest for a wand. “I don’t need a wand, anyway. I have more control over my magic without any of these silly sticks!”

Ollivander freezes, a bewildering look crossing his face. “Mr Asano, why on earth didn’t you say so in the first place?”

Gakushuu blinks in surprise as a huge beaming smile lights up the old man’s face. “I beg your pardon?”

As usual, Ollivander completely ignores him, hopping his way through his ruined shop to the back room. 

Ren stands slowly. “Is it over now?”

Gakushuu shakes his head. “No. Perhaps we should move on, I doubt this Ollivander will find anything for me at this rate.”

Ren slumps, crestfallen. “No one’s as good as Ollivander. How are you supposed to go to Hogwarts without-”

**_Gakushuu._ **

Gakushuu freezes, turning towards the whisper.

**_Gakushuu. Gakushuu. Gakushuu._ **

Ren’s still speaking, but his words fade away into static as Gakushuu steps towards the siren call, the whispers of his name filling his mind and soul, trapping him in the sweet promise of it.

**_I can feel you near me. Come closer. Come closer. Gakushuu. Gakushuu. Gakushuu. Gakushuu! Gakushuu!_ **

Ollivander steps out of the back room, a lead wand box in hand. He pauses as he sees Gakushuu staring at it, walking closer slowly. Gakushuu doesn’t notice. He doesn’t care. Even when Ollivander looks to be changing his mind, ready to put the box back and send him away, Gakushuu is only focused on the whispers from inside of it. They grow in volume, stripping away any and all logical thought in their desperate  _ need _ for him.

**_GAKUSHUU! OPEN THE BOX! FIND ME FIND ME FIND ME GAKUSHUU! GAKUSHUU! GAKUSHUUGAKUSHUUGAKUSHUUGAKUSHUUGAKUSHUU-_ **

He opens the box.

Inside lies a wand. Long, thin, lethal black metal, the point deadly sharp. Words in a lost language stumble around the circumference, intertwined with carvings of leaves and flowers. It isn’t beautiful, but it is, in a way. It feels so wrong, sitting there, but everything in him screams  _ right right right _ . It’s innocent, simply a small spire of metal in a box, but every smooth line and curve emphasises its danger. It is, but it is not.

“I had never thought anyone would know it.” Ollivander whispers. “Even now, I… Mr Asano, if you choose to pick up this wand, there is no going back.”

He knows. Something inside him already knows this, and yet he reaches forward and wraps his fingers around the metal. The whispers build to a crescendo, yelling and fighting, and then all of a sudden his mind is silent, the smooth weight in his palm becoming one with his soul.

“Gakushuu?” Ren’s voice squeaks behind him.

He smiles, closing his eyes at the rush of pure power. This is his wand. No other could ever be like this. A breath in, a breath out, and he opens his eyes, taking in Ollivander’s cautiously terrified face. “Tell me about it.”

The elderly man stumbles over his words as he begins. “This was donated to me by the Ministry, after they found it buried under a lake. I restored it as best I could, but then I felt the… energy from it. I knew the Ministry couldn’t handle such a thing, the Unspeakables would make a mess of it, so I requested to keep it for further examination. The metal, I have never seen before, and I’m unwilling to break apart the wand to look inside, so I truly have no idea of the core or wood. The metal is strangely flexible, in the right temperatures. I’m afraid I really know nothing more of it, Mr Asano. I can only hope that, since the wand has chosen you, it will reveal its secrets to you in good time.”

“What of the scriptures carved into the metal?” He questions, turning it over in his hand to get a clearer look.

“That is another curious thing; they change.” Ollivander says helplessly, setting the lead box to one side. “It is the old language, the language used in the time of Albion, yet I can only ever finish translating the first word before it changes once more.”

Gakushuu frowns, focusing on the words. They don’t move. Perhaps he’ll see it later, it is his wand, after all. “I’ll take it. How much?”

Ollivander tells them the price of each wand, and hands over a small pouch for his wand. Evidently, Gakushuu shouldn’t carry it in his back pocket like Ren can. Ren’s mother bustles in just as they are paying, and they finish the rest of the collection with her at their side. The robes seem impractical, but Gakushuu has a feeling that they could be useful if he learns to flare them out as dramatically as Ren knows how to do. They’ll certainly leave a strong impression. With a tightly-packed car, they drive Gakushuu back home, and Ren’s mother insists that she helps him carry all his things to the house.

On their drive, Ren swears secrecy to their discussion with Ollivander about Gakushuu’s wand. If anyone were to find out how important it is, they might steal it. Worse still, if they were to find out Ollivander’s terror at finding Gakushuu as the owner, they may believe Gakushuu is evil in some way. Fear is only good if you can balance it out with admiration. Gakushuu would like to start his relationship with other students on his own terms.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I see.”

Silence, if one is ignoring the steady click of nails against wood. Gakushuu is.

“The letter, if you will?”

Gakushuu passes it over calmly, making sure the ticket and list don’t drop out. There’s another long moment of silence as his father reads over the letter. Gakushuu almost wishes he brought Owl in, to interrupt the taught air with a hoot, but he doubts Owl will take a liking to his father. Another incident like the one with the snooty boy in the shop won’t be appreciated by his father.

“Show me.”

He stares at the man, who sits back in his desk chair with a pleasant, smug smirk. “Sorry?”

“Perform some magic trick of yours, and I shall consider this.”

It’s a challenge. Everything his father asks (demands) of him is a challenge, to prove his worthiness. On the surface, it may sound like asking for some evidence this is real, but his father isn’t one to entertain a fantasy. The man already believes him. He just wants to humiliate Gakushuu, make him perform some weak, spluttering spell, and rip into him for ‘being unworthy to attend an evidently prestigious institution like this’.

It’s lucky that Gakushuu has been training himself.

Focusing on his father’s potted plant, he digs into the thrum of power in his veins and  _ pulls _ . His eyes sting for a second, then the plant is rising steadily into the air, not a drop of dirt falling down. Part of him wants to glance at his father’s face, yet he knows he can’t risk breaking his concentration. With another rush of energy, he sends the plant launching at his father’s face.

He catches it. Of course he does. “Impressive. I’m sure any circus ringmaster would be delighted to have you. I’ll assume that the flash of gold in your eyes was merely for dramatic effect, as I’m sure no son of mine would show such an obvious sign that the magic is his doing. This is supposed to be a secretive society, after all.”

The flash of gold? He hasn’t ever noticed that. “Of course, sir.”

His father sets the plant back in its place, adjusting it to be exactly in the position it was previously. “Very well. This school is undeniably unique, and I’m sure you could excel amongst your ilk if you struggle hard enough.” He pulls forward his laptop, opening it and typing with a speed that most would deem inhumane. Gakushuu notes this skill down as another he has to learn. “If you truly wish to attend, I believe you’ll have no issue agreeing to this contract.” With that, he flips the laptop around, revealing a long document that will no doubt be legally binding once Gakushuu signs.

“The terms?” Gakushuu questions, reaching forward and sending the document to his own account, for future reference.

“Number one. You shall keep up with any and all normal work I send you, as this school doesn’t seem to teach basic arithmetic, let alone the anatomy of the technological world that you originally aimed for.”

Double schoolwork. He can manage that. If he keeps out of the way of any students council or extracurricular activities, he should be set.

“Number two. You shall send me monthly updates of your progress, along with a suitably broad portfolio of your work. Reports by your professors shall accompany this.”

Easily done, and not much more different than his current life. His father keeps an unwavering eye on his life, every detail monitored and recorded. How he eats his food is just as much a subject to be monitored as his leadership and schoolwork.

“Number three. You shall maintain a healthy diet and exercise habits, which includes avoidance of unhealthy food chains and daily exercise, to be confirmed by whoever the school nurse may be. Specific details are outlined in the document.”

Naturally. Gakushuu is not about to let his body go, not when he’s still developing. If he slacks on it now, his mental capacities may be affected for the rest of his life, along with any opportunities in business or romance.

“Number four. You shall enter any competitions or challenges, and win first place. Consequences for not achieving this will be decided at the time. Exceptions are provided in detail in the document.”

A little harder. To put in the effort to win something, he will need to balance working on his double load of schoolwork with channeling enough energy to completely annihilate any competition. Then again, now he can learn to have more control over his magic, he’ll be able to use it to sabotage the competition. It’s not cheating, simply adapting.

“Number five. I understand the usual English system does not publish rankings, but I shall hand you a letter to be delivered to the Headmaster. It will ensure that each professor places you in a position among your classmates. I expect you to maintain number one in every class. If your untrained mind and body cannot achieve this, I will allow three of those rankings to be in the top five. I hope your pitiful talents can reach at least this.”

Harder still. With no previous experiences of any of these classes, it’s likely for Gakushuu to start the term far behind purebloods. He’ll have to study each textbook like they’re his religious books.

The list goes on, and on, and on, consisting of a total of fifty demands. Most are to make sure Gakushuu maintains his status and is monitored closely, but a few others are borne of Gakuhou’s lack of knowledge about the magical world (number 18: write an essay on an aspect of magical culture each week). It’s somewhat amusing to Gakushuu to have his father less knowledgeable on a subject than him.

“If any of these terms are broken, you shall be removed from Hogwarts and placed into a suitable muggle school.”

“Understood, sir.”

His father taps at the laptop screen, bringing up the pen tool, and slides it towards Gakushuu. He signs (after making sure to read every detail over - he isn’t about to be caught out by an unexpected clause).

“Very well. Call the housekeeper to bring your items to your room. I imagine you have some studying to do.” His father’s lips curl into a mocking smile, which Gakushuu gladly returns.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Question time!
> 
> Would you like to see another character's perspective? If so, who?
> 
> (This would be after Chapter Seven, since that's already written up.)


	4. Time Flies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two eleven-year-olds talk magical genetics. Gakushuu finds out what a Weasley is.
> 
> Enjoy!  
> \- E.D.

Then it’s September first, and Gakushuu has no idea how time flew by so quickly. It feels like only yesterday that he sat down with the first textbook in his lap. Needless to say, he simultaneously prepared himself for both magical and normal schoolwork, hiring his own tutor with the money he makes from business investments. Ren’s dad generously offered to help bring him up to speed on the magical studies, yet Gakushuu had to go easy on their sessions. He’d hate for Ren’s father to see how… unbalanced he is about starting Hogwarts on the back foot. He knows people think he has something wrong with him when he gets over stressed about work.

Even so, it is enough to soothe his mind. He now knows the basics, from the rules of a quidditch game (which sounds fairly perilous, but he’s not one to judge) to the potion recipe for Sleeping Draught. He’d asked if there was a potion to stay awake all night and concentrate, but Ren’s father had only laughed nervously and moved on. Hopefully the potions professor will be more useful.

At 10:30 am, the car pulls up smoothly in front of King’s Cross Station. The chauffeur, Elyan, turns to him with a grin. “Ready, sir?”

Gakushuu nods, closing his book and sliding it on top of the pile beside him. “I would appreciate some assistance with my belongings.”

“Sure, no bother.” Elyan gets out, holds open Gakushuu’s door for him, then opens up the trunk. “Did sir say goodbye to you?”

“He gave me an extra stack of paper and a few pens after breakfast. For writing to him in my monthly reports.”

“Wow.” Elyan’s smile turns bitter, shooting one of those looks at him as he loads his things into a trolley. “I’d almost think he misses you.”

Gakushuu gives him… eight days until he’s fired. “Quite.”

“What’s the platform number? I can wheel everything in for you.” Owl’s cage is the last item to be brought out, settling on top of the pile.

“I shall be quite alright myself. There is a reason he did not come to wish me farewell.” Gakushuu fishes an owl treat out of his pocket to feed Owl, checking his ticket along the way. “Nine and three quarters. Hm.”

“You sure about that?” Elyan raises an eyebrow. “I’ve never heard of that platform before, and sir visits this building a lot.”

“I’ll figure it out inside.” Gakushuu dismisses, grabbing the handles of the trolley. “Goodbye, Elyan.”

“Good bye, sir, and good luck.” Elyan bows slightly, a fond twinkle in his eye as he watches Gakushuu leave. Treated like an adult, as he should be.

The station is fairly packed, businessmen and families and couples mixing and weaving in and out of each other. Owl is just as fond of the packed scene as Gakushuu is, letting out irritated hoots and fluffing up her wings at every turn, attracting unwanted attention from around them. Gakushuu sighs, resigning himself to fattening her up on treats as he makes his way through. Platform eight, platform nine… platform ten. Of course. As though the wizarding world would make finding the right platform easy.

Ok. Ok. Think. Diagon Alley had a secret entrance, yes? So logic says that Platform nine and three quarters will need the same, something magical, yet easily accessible. Something hidden, like the old dirty courtyard for Diagon Alley. Between platform nine and ten. Setting his jaw, Gakushuu pushes his cart slowly down platform nine, searching for… something. What does a secret magical entranceway look like?

At the bottom, he pauses, turns, and makes his way back up. And again. And again. By this point it’s already 10:45, and Gakushuu is starting to worry he may miss the train due to this oversight. With the last of his patience threatening to dissolve into panic, he approaches the train guard, desperately hoping the man is magical.

“Excuse me, sir?”

The guard looks down, a disgruntled curl to his lip as he takes in Owl. Gakushuu should have covered her with a cloth. “Yeah?”

“Would you happen to know where Platform… nine and three quarters is?” Gakushuu drops his voice in case any passing normal person happens to overhear.

“You wha’?” The guard scowls.

“Platform nine and three quarters.” Gakushuu repeats, bringing out his ticket.

At this, the man swells red. “Look, kid, I dunno wha’ prank you and your friends are pulling, but it ain’t funny! I ‘ad at least two other li’l kids ask me that today and I am bloody sick of it! Scram, before I kick you out of ‘ere!”

Pressing his lips together, Gakushuu pulls his trolley away from the man. On any other day, he would launch a few cold choice words at the man for insinuating such a thing, but today is different. Today, he’s pretty sure he’s going to miss his ticket out of his father’s house if he doesn’t leave rapidly. “My apologies.”

The unsettling tendrils of panic start winding their way into his chest as he sets off down the platform again, completely out of ideas. Why would they not say on the ticket how to find the platform? If he ever gets there (which is seeming more and more unlikely), he’s going to demand this be rectified, or at least sue the school for wasting his time.

A flash of jet black hair and green eyes. Gakushuu stops, making Owl squawk as she knocks into the bars of her cage. And… there! Yes, that’s the boy from yesterday, Harry Potter. The other man and Remus are there today, too, although their group seems to have gained a swarm of redheads. Gakushuu’s eyes skim over them, counting as he makes his way over. Two adults, male and female. A small girl, younger than him. A boy, the same age as him. A pair of twins, one of which is running at a brick wall.

Running at a brick wall.

Gakushuu can only stare as the trolley goes crashing into it, expecting to hear a scream or a yelp along with the clatter of many things falling out of the trolley. He… doesn’t. Instead, the trolley slips right through the wall, along with the boy. Neither come out of the other side.

Seriously?! Gakushuu glances about, both amazed and horrified that not a single normal person walking past seems to have noticed anything out of the ordinary. Is the average Londoner really that blind? The second twin follows his brother, and yet again, not one notices anything. Is it a spell? Gakushuu has noticed, however.

So astounded is he by this unexplainable phenomenon, he doesn’t realise any of them have seen him until the other man is waving at him. “Gakushuu! Come on over!”

Pleasant smile in place, he suppresses his burning questions to walk over like the average person, Owl picking at her feathers contentedly. “Mr Lupin, Harry. I’m assuming this is the entrance to the platform?”

“Yes, nine and three quarters right through there.” Lupin nods at the brick wall. “Don’t worry, it isn’t as scary as it looks.”

“Who’s this?” The ginger woman steps forward, large face beaming.

“Gakushuu Asano. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He smiles, holding out his hand. 

The woman smiles even wider, if that's possible. “What a polite young man! Why can’t you be like him, Ronald?”

The boy standing by Harry flushes red. “Mum!”

“Only joking, dear.” She says jovially, bustling forward to shake Gakushuu’s hand, peering about as she does so. “No one to see you off?”

“No. My father has important work to do.” Important work like combing through Gakushuu’s room in his absence, no doubt. He made sure to clean away everything remotely hinting at magic, and burned his outdated plans for domination, so his father luckily won’t find anything if he is.

“That’s a shame.” She pats his hand in her grip, face sympathetic. “Well, we’d better get you on the platform before the train sets off! I’m Molly Weasley, that’s my husband Arthur, that’s our daughter Ginny, then we have Ron, and Percy has already gone through, and the twins are Fred and George. Oh, they’ll be wondering where we’ve gone! You next, Ron!”

Gakushuu drops the smile the second the attention turns away from him. Mrs Weasley no doubt means well, but her tone makes something ugly curl inside of him. He hates being treated like a child.

Ron, the second youngest weasley, follows the twin brothers, then Harry, and finally Gakushuu stands in front of the wall. He knows he’ll go through, has seen all of the others slide through the wall like it wasn’t even there, but the emotional side of the brain can only see the brick wall and imagine the painful crash if he runs at it.

“All you need to do is run through it.” Mrs Weasley pats his shoulder. “You can close your eyes if you like, the first time is always a little scary.”

“I’m not scared.” He snaps, shifting away from the hand on his shoulder. She pauses, taken off guard, so he plasters on his most charming smile and turns to her, cursing his own impulsivity. “I was simply wondering how normal people never notice anyone running headfirst through a brick wall. Is there a spell?”

“Oh.” She smiles again, a touch of hesitation in it. “No, no spell. Muggles tend to come up with their own explanations whenever they see anything strange, poor dears. They think it’s a trick of the eye, and walk on past!”

Gakushuu stares at her. “So… you’re telling me, every year, a whole school of students and their parents run through a brick wall, and just pray that all of the crowds of normal people in a very busy train station ignore them?”

“Well, yes, I suppose I am.”

Gakushuu briefly feels his soul leave his body. “Right.”

“Through the wall you go!” The other man gives him a slight push on his shoulder, sending him stumbling forward. Automatically, he keeps going, closing his eyes just as the tip of his trolley starts sinking through the wall. He should be concentrating on this, noting down every feeling as it comes, but before he can pull himself out of his shock he’s through the wall and standing on a platform.

As with Diagon Alley, Gakushuu feels like he’s stepped into a different world altogether. Steam billows from the train (because, as Ren keeps reminding him, these people have no idea what modern technology is), children of all different ages run around with trolleys and parents, cloaks billowing and animals screeching. An iron sign creaks over the chaos, proudly declaring that this is ‘Platform 9 ¾’. Owl keeps mysteriously quiet, except for when Harry’s owl hoots at her. Then she rattles around in her cage screeching until Gakushuu throws a cloak over her. 

He smiles apologetically at Harry. “I’m sorry, Owl is quite vicious sometimes.”

“It’s alright.” Harry grins back, then pauses. “Did you say its name is Owl?”

“Yes.” Gakushuu switches to his sharper grin, daring Harry to challenge him. Owl is a perfectly suitable name. He can tolerate Ren despairing over his choice, but that’s because Ren has known him long enough not to actually judge him for it. Gakushuu knows that he’s become used to his eccentricities long before now.

“Right.” Harry shrinks away from the look. “Mine’s called Hedwig. Hagrid got her for me as a gift.”

“Lucky. All I got is Scabbers.” Ron pulls out a rat from his pocket. “All he does is sleep all the time.”

“Is Hagrid the name of the other man you were with?” Gakushuu asks curiously as the three of them make their way towards the train.

“Oh, no, that’s Sirius.” Harry grins again. “He adopted me after my parents died. It’s mostly been Remus looking after my studies and making sure I don’t die, though.”

Ron’s eyes go wide. “Wait… Are- are you-?”

“Harry Potter, yeah.” Harry sighs, grin wilting. “You can have a picture or an autograph if you want, but I really don’t want to talk about it.”

Fame. Gakushuu knows a little about it, from walking down the street and getting recognised by his father’s students. It’s hard to mistake him for anyone but his father’s son. Luckily, however, anyone who would recognise him from his father is too scared to actually approach him, so all he has to put up with is whispers and stares.

“Oh, okay.” Ron swallows, sneaking glances at Harry’s fringe. “I thought you might be when I saw your glasses, but I wasn’t sure. We don’t have to talk about it, that’s cool. Bloody hell.”

“Gakushuu!” Ren’s voice cuts over Ron’s mumbling as the boy runs over, his trolley knocking into some poor old woman. The woman calls after him, making Ren stop and give a rueful look at Gakushuu before turning to face her wrath.

“Is that your brother?” Harry quickly changes the subject, glancing at Gakushuu.

“No, he’s just my friend.” Gakushuu sighs, internally shaking his head as Ren bows frantically to the old woman. “I’m an only child.”

“Lucky!” Ron groans again. “I’ve got six siblings, so the house is a nightmare at Christmas. I can’t remember the last time I was able to brush my teeth in peace.”

“I wouldn’t count myself lucky.” Gakushuu mutters, thinking of the cold emptiness of his house at Christmas, with the staff away and the Christmas tree almost bare. The twelve days leading up to christmas, he’d have to finish an almost impossible task each day to earn a present. Last year, the worst one was fighting his own father in a martial arts competition. Needless to say, he didn’t earn himself that textbook on the anatomy of insects.

“So was that woman your mum or his?” Harry presses, frowning in concentration.

“His. I don’t have a mother.” Would it be better if he did? Would his father be more lenient? Would his mother sneak him into the house on cold nights, slip a cookie under the door of his room, clean the blood from his face after an intense competition? He’ll never know. It does no good to dream of what could have been.

“Sorry.” Harry’s face does a strange thing, an expression he can’t quite figure out. “When did she…?”

“I don’t know.” Gakushuu narrows his eyes at Harry. He’s asking a lot of questions. Childish curiosity, or something different? His father’s interference? No, his father has no way to know Harry.

“Thank Merlin!” Ren finally reaches them, Jaws perched on his head. “What an old hag. Who are-” He freezes, letting out a small squeak as he sees Harry.

“Ren, this is Ron Weasley and Harry Potter. Harry and Ron, meet Ren Sakakibara.” Gakushuu gestures between them all.

“Hello.” Harry and Ron chime together. Ren makes a sound like a dying whale.

“Lovely to meet you.” Gakushuu nods to each of them, taking Ren’s elbow and leading him away. “I hope we’ll meet again.”

“See you!” Harry calls back, and then a puff of steam separates the two.

“What was that?” Gakushuu frowns at Ren, making his way to the train doors. “You looked like a fool.”

“Harry- that was- Merlin, I just- I called her an old hag! In front of Harry Potter! What’s he going to think of me now?!” Ren wails, regaining his senses just in time to haul his trunk up the stairs.

“He likely thinks that you’re a mute.” Gakushuu sighs, trunk in one hand and cage in the other, struggling down the small corridor linking each compartment. “Next time, try to manage more than a screech when you see him.”

“Gakushuu, why can’t I just be you? Everything would be so much easier…”

He remains quiet at that, letting the silence be his response. Ren realises his mistake five seconds later, winces, and rapidly slides into a compartment. “Here will do!”

A girl with wispy blonde hair looks up, sparkly pink glasses with multicoloured lenses on her face.

“Never mind! We can find somewhere else.” Ren spins around.

Gakushuu smiles his shark smile at Ren, blocking the exit. Revenge is sweet, indeed. Ren makes a face at him, tries to get past, but Gakushuu simply moves to block his way. With a huff, Ren turns back around and slides into a seat. “Hello.” He says dismally.

“Hello.” The girl breathes, apparently unaware of the whole situation.

Gakushuu slides into a seat beside her, glancing at the magazine she was reading. “The Quibbler?”

“Oh, yes.” She holds it out to him. “Do you want to read it? My dad is the editor and publisher.”

He takes it, flicking through a few brightly coloured pages. “I see. The structure is well designed, you should give him my congratulations for the eye catching artwork he chose.”

“Thanks!” The girl smiles happily. “My name is Luna Lovegood.”

Before Gakushuu can introduce himself, Ren leans forward with a flick of his hair and a playful smile. “Ren Sakakibara, at your service.” Then, when she puts her hand in his, he has the audacity to press a gentle kiss to it.

Gakushuu scowls at Ren. Ren winks at Gakushuu. So this is how it’s going to be.

The girl giggles nervously as the two of them plaster on their most attractive smiles (Smile #3 for Ren, Good Smile #7 for Gakushuu) and lean forwards, subtly adjusting outfits and flicking hair. “You’re both first years, right?”

“Of course. My name is Gakushuu Asano, it’s an absolute pleasure to meet you. Are you a first year too?” Gakushuu adopts his Good Voice #16, the deeper one with a honeyed edge. He can see Ren bristle beside him. Oh yeah, he’s pulling out all the stops with this competition.

“Yes.” Luna nods, tipping her glasses down so she can see him properly. No reaction to the voice? “Your owl is very pretty. She reminds me of a Gladyswegiat Swordeye. They can cut off people's magic with one look, you know.”

“I have a pet puffskein.” Ren jumps in, pulling Jaws from his head. “He’s incredibly soft, would you like to stroke him?”

Bribes. Pathetic. Gakushuu gives a soft snort and raises one condescending eyebrow. Ren’s focus snaps to him, and then his bravado deflates at Gakushuu’s expression. Jaws is set on the table. Bewildered, Luna looks between the two, then shrugs and picks up Jaws to pet him. “You’re right. He is soft.”

Triumphant, Gakushuu exchanges Good Smile #7 for Good Smile #5 (interested, curious), and lightens his tone to reach Good Voice #2 (brighter, more excited). “You were saying Gladyswegiat Swordeyes can cut off people’s magic. How does this happen?”

Ren shuffles closer to the window, staring out with a dejected expression as the train starts moving. He can be such a sore loser. Honestly, Gakushuu would have expected Ren to concede that Gakushuu will always win everything, no matter what it is, by now. Clearly Ren is less intelligent than he originally thought. Even so, he’ll return back to his usual enthusiastic self by the time the train has arrived at Hogwarts.

Luna smiles happily at the question, setting Jaws back down on the table. “Well, you see, they can see magic. They’re one of the only species on earth to see our power, because they survive off eating small magical insects. If one of us goes near them, they can see our magic, and they have evolved to cut off the flow of magic from magical insects so they will be edible, and this means they can recreate this with us wizards and witches and wixes.”

“Are you suggesting that magic is a tangible substance on another layer of our reality?” Gakushuu frowns, thinking hard. This could be impressive for his first essay to his father; and explanation of what magic actually is.

“Exactly!” She looks even more delighted, leaning forwards. “Well, there’s not much proof to this theory, but if you look over everything, you can see how it all fits together. We manage to access this layer of our reality through a mutation in our genetics that originated in the middle ages, when magic was at its strongest peak.”

“And this mutation was so we, as humans, could survive through the magical challenges that everyday life suddenly posed us.” Gakushuu nods thoughtfully. “However, the mutation became less useful when those without the mutation were the majority, and began fearing those with it for their abilities.”

“Therefore, through witch hunts and the abrupt need to hide who we were, the population of wixes drastically reduced. Also, the magical occurrences in the world around us lessened until magic became more of a bonus than a need.” Luna continues, eyes bright.

“However, this mutation can still occur in infants created from normal people, as the magic itself in this layer of reality can still affect us today, as it has never truly left.” Gakushuu concludes, storing this information in the corner of his brain. “Interesting. We shall have to gather our evidence for this and present it to a research centre.”

“Research centre?” Luna blinks. “Oh, only muggles have those. The Department of Mysteries in the Ministry handles all magical research.”

Gakushuu frowns. “Surely this means that the government has total control, and therefore any research it disagrees with will never come to light? How can magical society agree to this?”

“That’s what my dad’s been trying to tell everyone!” Luna exclaims, tapping the Quibbler. “Now no one knows they’ve discovered a cure to magically altered memories, because the government doesn’t want anyone to be able to remember the Grady Street Protest of 1957.”

“How unfortunate.” Gakushuu hums, examining Luna properly for the first time. She’s clearly intelligent, as evidenced from their discussion, although with her appearance and airy tone, she could be mistaken for a conspiracy lunatic. With her father running a magazine, she could be a valuable connection to the rest of the wizarding world. She has grown up in the wizarding world too, so she would have more knowledge of magical culture and customs than either him or Ren. As a source of information and intellectual conversation, she could be incredibly useful.

Gakushuu holds his hand out, mind made up. “Lovegood, how would you like to be my friend?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Question time!
> 
> Can someone please tell me how to make the notes I put on the first chapter stop appearing in every new one I post? It's been two years and I'm still trying to figure out how this website works...
> 
> (Apologies for not responding to comments, and thank you to people who are commenting, I love to see what you're saying!)


	5. Time Will Tell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gakushuu: I'm an adult how dare you-
> 
> Also Gakushuu: *flounces about practising how to flick a cape*
> 
> Enjoy!  
> \- E.D.

Needless to say, Ren wasn’t particularly pleased about Gakushuu’s decision. Luna had accepted happily (she’d clearly never had a true friend before), and so Ren had no choice but to grin and bear it. After a while, he would no doubt come around to the idea, but for now Gakushuu will have to keep a lid on Ren’s jealous outbursts. Children can be so impulsive.

They only have seventeen minutes and forty one seconds before their scheduled arrival, so Gakushuu decides to get changed into his robes, leaving enough time to practice his cloak swishes. He and Ren had spent the majority of their time together (since getting their uniforms) trying to perfect the right levels of flamboyant and drama into these. So far, Gakushuu has ten cape flicks, ranging from ‘this is the end of the argument, I have won’ to ‘you’re hardly worth my time’. Ren’s are less sophisticated than his, obviously, so Gakushuu let Ren focus more on the pantomime-regal-prince side of things.

He’s just contemplating how to tell Ren his hand positioning is wrong when the snooty boy from the shop steps out of the compartment in front of him. Gakushuu is about to simply slide past him when two hulking boys follow Draco out, flabby pancake faces on both of them. He’s tempted to nickname them Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee.

“Asano.” The boy (Malfoy? Draco Malfoy?) sniffs, eyes raking up and down Gakushuu in a poor attempt to intimidate him. “I didn’t think you’d get on the train. Rabble like you usually end up forgetting where you are and running into the wrong brick wall.”

The Tweedles snicker.

Gakushuu sighs internally, painting a sharp smile over his face, the one with a little too much teeth on display. “Malfoy. So sorry you had to experience that yourself, perhaps my darling owl can help alleviate the pain in your face. She’s been missing you so much.”

Malfoy snarls at the reminder, hands closing into fists. “Your owl is psycho. Matches its owner, then!”

The Tweedles snicker.

Gakushuu stretches his smile out into a grin. Malfoy’s the one who brought it up. “I suppose it does. Would you like a demonstration?”

The boy snorts, stepping forward into Gakushuu’s space. How impolite. “Yeah, you can punch Goyle in the face. Psycho like you would love a brawl, right? Imagine the headlines; ‘Crazy mudblood assaults innocent pureblood’. That’ll show the world who belongs here and who doesn’t.”

The Tweedles snicker. Gakushuu is starting to think that’s the only thing they can do.

“I’m afraid physical violence isn't exactly my preferred method of elimination.” Gakushuu tilts his head. “How about we start with stripping Goyle here of his inheritance, and then move on to slandering your name in the newspapers, and finally set your other crony here up for expulsion. Of course, all of this is strictly hypothetical.”

Malfoy shakes his head in amused disbelief. “You really think you could actually do that? How big-headed are you? We hold way more power than you’ll ever have. By the end of this year, you’ll be begging us to have even half the amount of power we hold.”

The Tweedles snicker. Gakushuu feels the urge to sew their mouths shut pass by slowly.

“Malfoy, quite frankly, I could say the same to you.” Gakushuu estimates they’ve been talking for two minutes and around thirty seconds. He’s losing valuable time on this cretin. “But if you don’t mind, I have other business to attend to. I’m sure we can resume this scintillating conversation later. Excuse me.”

Malfoy glances back at Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee, who shuffle to fill up the entire corridor. “In fact, I do mind. You’re not leaving to go anywhere.”

Gakushuu lets a frown crease his brow. “Malfoy, let me through.”

Malfoy smirks instead, folding his arms. “Make me.”

Christ, give him strength. Gakushuu tears through his options, mind churning out ideas and the routes they will lead him. None seem to have a good outcome, so he decides- oh. Oh wait. He can use magic in public now, can’t he?

His eyes flick over Draco’s face, choosing something conspicuous but not too painful to transform. With a tug, he directs his magic at the offending item, and his eyes sting for a moment as it changes. There.

Malfoy sniggers. “You really think making your eyes change colour is going to scare me? Please.”

Gakushuu smiles smugly back. “You might want to look in a mirror, Malfoy. I’m afraid your pettiness, as it happened with Scrooge, is beginning to transform you in more ways than expected.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Malfoy narrows his eyes, turning his head to face the Tweedles. “Boys?”

They don’t snicker. Both of their mouths drop open, making them now resemble overfed goldfish.

“Uh, Malfoy?” Tweedle Dee stutters. “You… Your eyebrow…”

“What?” The pale-faced boy snaps.

“Your eyebrow’s all…” Tweedle Dum mumbles. “Pink.”

“What?!” Malfoy shrieks, turning to a window and gaping in horror at his fluorescent pink left eyebrow.

Gakushuu stifles the giggle that threatens to burst out at Malfoy’s expression. Instead, he plasters a sickly sweet smile on his face, pushing forwards past the dismayed goons and into the freedom of the empty corridor behind. “Don’t fret, it will wear off.” He pauses as he reaches the bathroom. “Eventually.”

Slipping inside, he shuts the door and presses his back to it, listening to the chaos erupting outside. Malfoy shrieks at the Tweedles, declares war on multiple parties, and then storms off, the two human potatoes stumbling after him. 

Gakushuu could get used to this whole magic shtick.

~ ~ ~

Five minutes until arrival, the door to their compartment slides open. Gakushuu glances up from ‘ _ Hogwarts: A History _ ’ and meets the gaze of a bushy-haired, buck-toothed girl with a peeved expression.

“Has anyone seen a toad? A boy called Neville has lost his.” She breathes out, looking around at the three of them. A round-faced boy behind her, presumably Neville, gives a little sniff and wipes his teary eyes.

“No, sorry.” Ren answers her gloomily, resigned to reading the Quibbler.

“Oh!” Her eyes light up as she spots Gakushuu’s book. “You’re reading ‘ _ Hogwarts: A History _ ’? Which part are you up to?”

“I’m only flicking through.” He shrugs, although he had actually started reading it. The girl already seems like a busybody, and he isn’t keen on having her sharp eye on him. Engaging her in conversation would only lead to trouble.

“That’s a shame. You should read the full book, it’s very good. My favourite, in fact.” She jabbers, each word as quick as a bullet. “My name’s Hermione Granger. What’s yours?”

“Gakushuu Asano.” He replies, holding out his hand and smiling guardedly. “This is Ren Sakakibara and Luna Lovegood.”

“Nice to meet you. This is Neville Longbottom, the one who lost his toad.” Hermione shakes his hand, ignoring Neville’s distressed sniffle at the reminder. “I didn’t get a pet, of course, I think I’ll be too busy studying to look after one, and besides, you don’t actually need a pet at all. If I want to send letters to my parents - they’re muggles, by the way - I’ll just use the ones in the owlery. It’s a shame we’re not able to use technology- oh! That’s actually part of ‘ _ Hogwarts: A History _ ’, we can’t use muggle technology inside Hogwarts. I think it’s a shame, don’t you? It would be so much easier to communicate.”

“That’s what I’ve been saying!” Gakushuu perks up, relieved to finally meet another magical person with common sense. “It’s as though magical society is purposefully ignoring the wonders of modern technology. Not only do they use owls to deliver letters, which is possibly the least inconspicuous way to hide messages, they don’t seem to realise that steam trains are appallingly bad for the environment.”

“When we can use brooms to fly about, and cause no carbon footprint, why do we insist upon a steam train?” Hermione nods enthusiastically, moving into the apartment. “I tried asking the wizard, who came to explain everything, about what wizarding society is doing about global warming, but he just looked at me blankly. It’s shocking the ignorance he had, truly.”

“I think they’re-” Gakushuu pauses, setting down his book. “Did you say that a wizard came to explain everything to you?”

“Yes?” She frowns, startled into silence by the sudden topic change.

Gakushuu turns to Ren, bewildered. “So why did I need you to explain? Should I have not received a visit from a wizard too?”

“Are you muggleborn too?” Hermione questions as Ren shrugs helplessly.

“Yes.” Gakushuu draws out the word, thinking. “Did they perhaps automatically assume Ren would explain? What if I hadn’t told you, and simply thrown the letter out?”

“Why would you have thrown it out?” Luna looks up from staring out of the window.

“I thought it was a prank at first.” Gakushuu waves her off. “The owl couldn’t offer much explanation when it came, seeing as how it couldn't talk.” He pauses, holding up a hand to cut off Ren's next words. “Hermione… there was another statement that caught my attention. You said you would use the owls in the owlery.”

Of course. He should have suspected this, when Ren decided to buy a puffskein and not an owl. It seems like his subordinate has been insubordinate, scheming behind his back to trip him up when he least expects it. A frustrated hissing irritation seeps into his muscles, coiling them tight, making his jaw grind together. To think that he could have saved his money and time by leaving the creature where he left it! All those wasted moments feeding the owl and cleaning her cage and snapping at her to be quiet, trying to explain away her presence to the housekeeper when they know perfectly well his father doesn’t tolerate animals.

Hermione nods slowly, looking between Gakushuu’s cold expression and Ren’s paling face in confusion.

“Ren.” Gakushuu sticks on Smile #1, the smile his father wears when he’s about to… do something. “Would you kindly tell me why you didn’t inform me of an owlery on site, therefore preventing me from purchasing this now unnecessary pet?”

“Well…” Ren grins sheepishly. “It isn’t totally unnecessary. It’ll be quicker than Hogwarts owls, and it can attack that pointy kid from the shop.”

“Why would it do that?” Luna frowns, exchanging a perplexed glance with Hermione.

Gakushuu sighs, focusing on Ren. “So you wasted my time and money, all for an aggressive owl.”

Ren swallows. “...It’s a pet, Asano. For… fun.”

“Fun?” He hisses scathingly, making Ren wince. The two girls are shuffling awkwardly, so he flashes them a charming smile and takes his intimidation down a notch. “Is that truly your excuse, Sakakibara? Is your mind so incapable of functioning that the only reason you could think of for draining me of my will to live is ‘ _ fun _ ’? I’d expected better. You owe me for not ridding myself of you right this moment.”

Ren ducks his head, whispering meekly. “Ok. I’m sorry.” Pathetic. Gakushuu scoffs, turning his back to his weak servant, and faces Hermione once more…

...who scowls at him. “Is that really how you treat your friends?”

He blinks at her, taken off guard. “I’m sorry?”

She huffs. “You had no right to speak to him like that! If I were him, I’d be glad not to be your friend.” She whirls away, striding out of the compartment and shutting the door with a definite slam.

...What?

Gakushuu turns back to Luna and Ren, surprised to see that Luna is staring at him in that way too. He didn’t do anything too bad at all! Why are they reacting so strongly to this? All he said were a few words, he didn’t demand anything of Ren, he didn’t hit him or shout at him or insult him until he was a quivering mess. Gakushuu opens his mouth to request an answer when the train suddenly judders to a halt.

“Oh, good, we’re here.” Ren stammers, jumping to his feet. “Come on.”

Without pause, Ren pushes his way out of the compartment, and Luna follows him. Shaking his head, Gakushuu follows them. The opportunity is lost; he can ask later.

They step out into a whirlwind of students, all shoving past each other to try to get to where they’re going. Gakushuu is slightly worried he won’t be able to find his own destination until he sees both the head and shoulders of an enormous bearded man poking out, far taller than even the most lanky students.

“Firs’-years! Firs’-years over here! Mind yer step now!” The hairy man shouted, a rough west country accent thickening his words. He holds a lamp over the heads of the crowd, swinging it back and forth to illuminate the smallest students struggling their way towards him.

“That’s Hagrid.” Someone bumps Gakushuu’s shoulder, making him stumble as he loses his balance. He turns to ridicule them, and comes face to face with golden eyes and bright red hair sticking out madly. “He’s the groundskeeper. Good for a laugh, y’know? Terrible rock cakes, though.”

“And you are?” Gakushuu raises an eyebrow imperiously, raking his eyes up and down the boy’s ruffled appearance, the cloak replaced with a black blazer, his grin edging on manic. His entire appearance screams delinquent, which Gakushuu is not keen on being associated with.

“Karma Akabane, second year.” The boy performs the most ludicrous bow, knocking into several people and flourishing his hand to whack into a girl’s face. They scurry out of his way, grumbling and aiming disgruntled glares at him, which he seems completely oblivious to. “You?”

“Gakushuu Asano, first year.” He eyes the hand disdainfully. “If you don’t mind, I have a hairy giant to get to.” Hurriedly, he turns on his heel and starts the arduous journey through the mass of cloaks towards Hagrid.

“He’s a half-giant, actually!” Karma calls after him, which - he doesn’t particularly want to think about. How would a giant and a human - no, no, he’s not thinking about it. Nope.

“C’mon, follow me - any firs’-years?” Hagrid continues to bellow, setting off down a steep narrow path once there is a small crowd around him. “Mind yer step, now! Firs’-years follow me!”

Gakushuu is lumped in between the round-faced boy, Neville, and a girl with blonde pigtails. Neville keeps sniffling. Gakushuu prays he doesn’t start bawling outright - snot and tears are not pleasing substances to drip onto your robes. Unfortunately, the thick darkness on either side of the path is pressed in so tight that Gakushuu can find no way to tactfully move away from the boy.

“Yeh’ll get yer firs’ sight o’ Hogwarts in a sec,” Hagrid calls, “jus’ round this bend here.”

Gakushuu strains his neck to see past the tall boy in front, cursing his late growth spurt. ‘Ooo’s echo from the other students as they turn the corner and - there it is. Hogwarts. A great black expanse of water stretches out in front of them, ominous and dark, and Gakushuu swears he can see something shift under the surface. On the other side of the lake, a mountain stretches up towards the sky, and there, at its peak, a castle sprawls. Gakushuu can’t see the building in much detail from here, but the mixture of sharp turrets, rounded arches, and flying buttresses make it near impossible for him to work out what period it was built in. Nevertheless, it makes an impressive sight.

“No more’n four to a boat!” The hairy half-giant declares, pointing a fat finger to a small fleet of boats by the water’s edge. 

Gakushuu sweeps towards the boats, glad when he sees a spare seat in a boat with Ren, Luna and another boy with sandy-coloured hair. He settles into it, eying Ren’s uncomfortable shuffling.

“Everyone in?” Hagrid shouted, his large mass taking up an entire boat. “Right then - FORWARD!”

There’s a jolt, and then the boats set off smoothly across the lake, barely making much more than a ripple.

“Woah…” The new boy breathes, leaning over the side to look. He has a distinct irish accent. “How’d you think they do that?”

“Magic, I imagine.” Gakushuu drawls, rolling his eyes at Ren. Ren, thankfully, smirks back. 

“Well, yeah, but… you know.” The boy shrugs, turning back to look at the castle. “This place is huge! How’re we supposed to find our way around?”

“I assume they’ll provide us with a map.” Gakushuu replies with just a hint of exasperation. Had he been placed in a year group of idiots?

“Oh, yeah.” The boy grins. “I’m Seamus.”

“Gakushuu Asano.” He shakes Seamus’ hand. He’ll have to stretch out the muscles in it afterwards, with all of this hand-shaking it’s doing.

“I’m Ren.”

“Luna.”

“Nice to meet you all! What house do you think you’ll be in?” Seamus leans forward, eyes bright. “My mam thinks I’ll be Hufflepuff, but I don’t really mind either way. As long as I’m not Slytherin.”

Ren shudders. “Can you imagine? With all of those pureblood kids? My mum says she almost got killed by one of them, in her day. Prank gone wrong.”

“What year was she in? Was she there with the, you know…” Seamus lowers his voice. “Death Eaters?”

“No, thank Merlin.” Ren grimaces. “She might have been doing her N.E.W.T.S. when that Lestrange woman was in the younger years, though. I never asked.”

Gakushuu coughs politely, reminding them he is there. “Why would it matter what house you’re in?”

“Oh, sorry.” Ren straightens. “I forgot to tell you. The houses aren’t just normal houses, like in our old school. Each house has different personality traits.”

Seamus nods, catching on. “There’s Ravenclaw, where all the smart people go.”

“They can also be the creative types.” Luna interrupts, a faint smile on her face.

“Yeah, yeah.” Seamus waves her off. “Then there’s Hufflepuff. They’re supposed to be kind and all, but I think they’re just the ones that don’t fit into the other houses.”

“Kind, loyal, and patient.” Luna corrects.

“Gryffindor!” Seamus carries on, a slight frown on his face at Luna’s inputs. “Bravery. They’re the ones who would win in a fight, and they’re sort of the superhero types.”

“Passionate, chivalrous, brave, and honest.”

“Right, right, okay!” Seamus shakes his head. “Then there’s Slytherin. You don’t want to be in Slytherin.”

“Why not?” Gakushuu frowns, glancing between the fearful looks on both Ren and Seamus’ faces. Luna seems as calm and airy as ever.

“All the Dark wizards come from Slytherin.” Ren drops his voice to a whisper. “You-Know-Who came from Slytherin. They’re the evil ones.”

“Actually-” Luna chimes in, but is cut off by Seamus.

“They’re supposed to be sneaky, and they only take care of themselves.” He hisses. “They’re all the pureblood lot, the ones who’d rather kill their own nan than speak to a muggle.”

“That’s not-”

“No one good comes out of Slytherin.” Ren nods knowingly. “If you’re put in Slytherin, it basically means you’re gonna end up killing a bunch of muggles and muggleborns.”

“So if I end up in Slytherin, I’m automatically going to kill people like myself.” Gakushuu purses his lips. “I don’t see much logic behind that.”

“You’re not going-”

“If you end up in Slytherin…” Seamus shakes his head. “Merlin have mercy on you. You’ll be murdered by them on your first night!”

“Gakushuu.” Luna tries again, and when no one interrupts her, she brightens. “That’s not what Slytherin is like. The traits are cunning, ambition, resourcefulness, and leadership. There are plenty of good wizards who were in Slytherin. Merlin himself was a Slytherin, and we still praise him today. Plenty of Dark wizards come from other houses too.”

“Thank you, Luna.” Gakushuu nods to her, then turns to the two boys. “I doubt all Slytherin children are evil the second they are placed in their house.”

“Heads down!” Hagrid yells as they approach the cliff. The conversation is paused for a second as they duck, passing under a curtain of ivy into a dark tunnel, presumably travelling beneath the castle.

“Well, not the second they’re there.” Ren concedes. “But with all the purebloods and their twisted views, how could you not turn evil?”

“Ren.” Gakushuu sighs, irritation bubbling up again. “Do you think I’m evil?”

“No!” Ren frowns. “Why would I?”

“If someone were to, hypothetically, grow up in a household under an evil parent, would the child automatically become evil?” He asks. It’s uncomfortably risky, talking about his father with these two new strangers, yet he has to make Ren see.

“Well, I suppose they-” Ren’s mouth drops open into an ‘o’, realisation spreading across his face. “Not really…”

“Exactly.” Gakushuu smiles his most condescending smile. “Think before you speak, Ren. Someone might one day believe you’re an utter fool with the drivel that comes out of your mouth.”

“I said the stuff he did too.” Seamus stands as they reach the underground harbour, a challenge written over his squared jaw. “Do you think I’m an utter fool?”

“Of course not, Seamus.” Gakushuu stands too, stepping out of the boat with his back to both of them. It contains a certain level of risk, turning his back, considering all the things they could do while he isn’t looking at them. Still, he judges both of them are too childish to really do much damage yet, and the move sends a definite signal of ‘you’re not worth my time’. “Although you may want to keep your prejudices to yourself in case I change my mind.”

No response. Satisfied, Gakushuu follows Hagrid up the passageway, over the grass, and up the flight of stone steps. The Hermione girl gives him a glare from what little she had heard of their conversation, but she hardly matters. The less she wants to get to know him, the better. He doubts she’ll be much of a socialite anyway, so she holds no gain in being his friend.

“Everyone here? You there, still got yer toad?” Hagrid lifts a meaty fist to the oak front door, knocking thrice. Neville nods, now clutching a squirming toad.

The door flies open at once, revealing a tall, black-haired witch in emerald-green robes. Her face is stern, glasses perched on the end of her nose.

“The firs’-years, Professor McGonagall.” Hagrid grumbles out.

“Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here.”

Finally. Someone Gakushuu can relate with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's funny how fanfiction is seen as inferior to published books, but most of what I read on here is better than the books I'm struggling to get through... It's almost as though worth is determined based on how much money it makes you...


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